This invention relates to cartridge ammunition and a method of making the same.
German Offenlegungsschrift (application published without examination) 41 38 269, to which corresponds U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,599, discloses a cartridge having a combustible cartridge case which, for increasing performance, has three partial charges: a high charge-density first partial charge which is a compressed propellant powder and which is disposed between the rear of the projectile and the cartridge base, a second partial charge which is a bulk propellant powder and which is situated at that side of the cartridge case which is oriented towards the projectile tip, and a third partial charge situated between the first and second partial charges. The third partial charge is a rod-shaped propellant which may also contain bulk propellant powder shaken into the space accommodating the rod propellant.
It is one of the disadvantages of the above-outlined known cartridge that the second partial charge, because of its low charge density, contributes only slightly--if at all--to the desired performance increase of the cartridge. Further, the compression of the first partial charge in the cartridge case leads to problems of reproducibility which is particularly disadvantageous when firing cartridges at low temperatures. Also, introducing the propellant into the known cartridge is a relatively time-consuming process.